In Which Puck is a Friend
by lunafan4ever
Summary: Pretty much what the title says. Very mild AU set during early season three, like before 'I Am Unicorn' early. Kurt is sad and Puck is a friend. Not meant to be read as slash, but I suppose you could if you're determined... really though just friendship.


SO this is something that I started ages ago an had the urge to finish today. That said, most of this was written quickly in less than an hour and has not been beta read, so if you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me and I will do my best to fix them when I get the chance. Any comments or criticisms that you'd like to share are welcome, and the review button down there always makes me happy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, any of it's characters ect. ect. But really, would anyone ever think that I did?

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><p>Kurt Hummel leaned back against his locker and slid down to the floor. He had held together all day, but now the final bell had rung, the McKinley student body had left and he had run out of steam. He and Blaine were over, and he hadn't seen it coming.<p>

Blaine only stayed at McKinley for a few weeks, then the bullying started. Kurt had expected it and tried to warn his boyfriend, but it was hard to expect a slushie facial unless you had experienced one before. Blaine had transferred back to Dalton with promises that they would still make time for each other. Kurt had meant his half of the promise, though apparently Blaine hadn't. And now Kurt was sitting on the floor in front of his locker, a pose he had not held since the day Karofsky threatened to kill him.

Footsteps echoed down the hallway, but Kurt ignored them, pulling his knees closer to his chest. On a normal day he wouldn't even think about letting his designer clothes touch the floors at McKinley (who knows what sort of junk he was sitting on) but this wasn't just another normal day.

Kurt took his phone out and looked at the text again:

_Kurt, I'm sorry, I can't. I guess I'm not brave enough. I don't have your courage._

_-Bla__ine_

"Damn you, Blaine," he muttered.

"Hummel, man, are you alright?"

Kurt looked up to see Noah Puckerman standing over him, looking almost worried. He took a breath to steel himself. "Of course Puck, why wouldn't I be?"

Puck gave him an odd look. "Dude, you're crying."

Kurt raised a hand to his cheek and felt dampness there. "Oh."

Puck continued to stare at him. "Yeah. So are you going to tell me, or will I have to make you?"

Kurt sniffed. "What are you going to do – throw me in a dumpster if I hold out?"

Puck chuckled, sliding down the lockers next to Kurt. "I could, you know." Kurt shot him a dirty look. "Alright, that wasn't funny – but will you tell me?"

Kurt gave a long-suffering sigh, then said in a small voice: "_Blaine_."

"What did the hobbit do? Do you want me to kick his ass?"

Kurt looked up to see Puck staring intently at him. "Since when do you care?" he asked coldly.

Puck ran a hand over his mohawk. "Kurt, we're in Glee together. You're my boy, and if your bowtie-wearing boyfriend upset you it's my job to kick his ass!"

Kurt sighed. "Puck, you can't beat him up – you'll be sent back to juvie," he said, glancing at Puck, who merely shrugged. "I'm serious Puckerman, do not go after Blaine. I don't need a guard dog, I am perfectly capable of looking after myself."

Puck held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Alright, calm down, don't get your panties in a wad!" he chuckled at Kurt's scowl. "Seriously though, Princess, what happened with Blaine?"

Later, Kurt would consider claiming that unstable emotions were what led to his next actions. "Blaine… broke up with me," he said.

"Shit," said Puck. "How long have you been hiding this?"

"Hiding it?" Kurt asked, puzzled.

"Yeah," said Puck, stretching his legs out in front of him. "Mercedes said you went to see him on the weekend, why didn't you let any of us know what happened?"

"He didn't break up with me on the weekend."

"You mean the little punk didn't have the guts to break it off face-to-face?" Puck's disbelief was evident in his tone.

"No, he…" Kurt's voice cracked, but he continued speaking. "He texted me, during second period," he finished in a small voice, offering his cell to Puck half-heartedly.

Puck scanned the text quickly and cursed, "That bastard!" he exclaimed, passing the phone back.

"Puckerman!" Kurt protested, but the football player cut him off.

"Kurt, your boyfriend broke up with you _through a text_. You should be pissed! Even I have more class than that." Kurt snorted disdainfully. "I'm serious, Kurt!"

"You don't understand. It's different for… for people like Blaine and me. Every aspect of our relationship, no matter how minor, is looked at as a scandal, even if we're just holding hands! I've never had the chance to hide who I am, I mean look at me," Kurt gestured to his rather flamboyant outfit. "Blaine just wasn't ready to deal with everything that comes along with being part of an out couple, and yes I am upset, but I can't hate him for that."

"Because he's totally in the closet back at gay Hogwarts, right?" Puck said, before he could stop himself, but he continued before Kurt could start up again. "Look, you may be right about me not knowing what it's like to be gay in wonderful little Lima, Ohio," he said with an edge to his voice. "But it's not that different. You and Blaine are – sorry, were – a couple, and gay or not, that comes with rules that should be followed. One huge rule is that if someone breaks up with you via text message they are a dick, and Kurt, you deserve better."

"These rules you mentioned, do they say anything about sleeping with your best friend's girlfriend and getting her pregnant?" Kurt asked viciously. Puck's face clouded over and he began to leave, but a hand on his arm stopped him. "Don't... I'm sorry… Puck, I know that was out of line."

Puck sighed. "It's okay, Princess."

"No, it's not. I'm hurting, but that doesn't make it okay to hurt you. And yes, I know you're probably too badass to admit to it, but what I said was hitting below the belt."

Puck shrugged, but didn't say anything. The two sat against the lockers in silence while Kurt composed himself, wipe the tears off his face and gathered his bag. Puck stood up and offered him a hand up, which the smaller teen accepted.

"Thanks," he said quietly.

"No problem," Puck replied. "Do you need a ride home?" he asked.

Kurt shook his head. "My dad _finally_ let me have the navigator back, so I can get around on my own again. Besides, I've seen that death trap you call a truck, and honestly I'm surprised it's lasted this long."

"Hey, don't hate on Ellie," Puck said. "She may be old, but she's got a lot of heart."

Kurt let out a small chuckle. "You named your truck Ellie?"

Puck grinned, spurred on by Kurt's laugh. "Yep, and she's a real babe." Kurt only laughed harder at that. The pair reached the parking lot and Puck was about to walk towards his truck when he was stopped, again, by a hand on his arm.

"Puck… just, thank you. Really. You just…" Kurt trailed off.

Puck smiled, a warm smile that was miles away from his usual smirk. "Anytime, Hummel. Seriously, we're in Glee together, that means we need to stick together."

"Yeah," Kurt said slowly, smiling. "Yeah, I think you're right."

"Oh, and Hummel," Puck said. "If you change your mind about teaching Blaine a lesson, just let me know. I may not be able to hit him, but be sure that the Puckasaurus doesn't need physical violence to send a message."

Kurt managed to suppress an eye roll, but failed to suppress a grateful smile. "I'll keep that in mind, Puckerman." He said, trying (and failing) to ignore the shit eating grin that lit across Puck's face.

As Kurt Hummel climbed into the driver's seat of his navigator he had to admit that he was feeling better. He wasn't back to where he was before the breakup, but given a bit of time, he would be. Most importantly though, he knew he didn't have to go through the hard times alone. He had his family and his friends to get him through, and as he watched a beat up old pickup truck named Ellie pull onto the road behind him, he realized that the latter category might be larger than he expected.

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><p>AN: So that was a thing that I wrote. I suppose it's set sometime in early season three, and it's a it AU, but honestly I've wanted to write something with Kurt and Puck for ages, and I can't do pairings without disturbing amounts of sappiness (as evidence see the horrors of 1,001 ways), so friendship it is. I think it's alright though... oh whatever. I feel I should note that I am not opposed to Klaine, they just needed to be broken up for the events of this story.<p>

Also, a slightly unrelated note: in I Kissed a Girl, when Puck reveals that he is good at math despite never attending math class, the inner fangirl who has been in hiding for some time came out to squee. All I could think of were the season-one era Kurt/Puck fics that I read that had Puck skipping math class because he already knew it all. I couldn't even see it as a continuity fail, because its been my headcanon for AGES. God damn but I frickin adored those days.

Thank you so much for reading!


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